March 3, 2026

Ongoing War and Global Reaction

Good morning, everyone!

If you missed it, be sure to check out the latest edition of Last Week in History:

Today, we will look at the ongoing war in the Middle East and the global response to it.

Let’s get to it.

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United States

-President Donald Trump said yesterday that he would not rule out sending ground troops to Iran “if they were necessary.” In an interview with CNN, he said a “big wave” of strikes is yet to come amid the escalating war in the region.

The remarks came on the same day as a White House ceremony where Trump awarded the Medal of Honor to three U.S. Army soldiers.

Following the ceremony, he took several questions from reporters regarding the ongoing conflict.

View it here:

At the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the goal of the military operation, which is now in its fourth day, is not “regime change.”

View his press conference here:

In remarks on Saturday announcing the military campaign, Trump called on the Iranian people to “take over” the government in Tehran, saying, “This will be, probably, your only chance for generations.”

Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed lawmakers on the ongoing operation yesterday, with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer saying it was “completely and totally insufficient.”

Rubio addressed reporters following the briefing.

View his remarks here:

Republican lawmakers have largely backed Trump’s actions, while Democrats have called for a vote on a war powers resolution to rein in Trump’s ability to authorize further strikes.

Speaking to reporters yesterday, House Speaker Mike Johnson said limiting Trump’s authority during the operation would be “dangerous.”

Protests, both in support and opposed to the operation, took place across the country yesterday, including outside of the White House.

-Speculation circulated on social media after photographs were published showing what appeared to be red markings on Trump’s neck during yesterday’s event at the White House.

In a statement from his personal physician, Dr. Sean Barbabella said Trump was using a “preventative skin treatment,” although he did not say what it was for.

-The House Oversight Committee released the video recordings of former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s testimonies last week as part of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein.

View Bill Clinton’s here.

View Hillary Clinton’s here.

Following his testimony on Friday, Clinton said he had “no idea of the crimes Epstein was committing, no matter how many photos they show of me.”

He added, “I know what I saw, and more importantly, what I didn’t see. And I know what I did. And more importantly, what I didn’t do.”

View his full statement here:

-The first primaries of the midterms will be held today, with elections across Texas, North Carolina, and Arkansas.

In Texas, both the Republican and Democratic fields in the contest for the U.S. Senate are being closely watched.

In the Democratic field, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett and State Representative James Talarico are locked in a hotly contested battle, with public polling in the race split.

Last week, Crockett gained the highest-profile endorsement in the race, with former Vice President Kamala Harris endorsing her candidacy.

In the Republican primary, four-term Senator John Cornyn is facing off against two primary challengers—state Attorney General Ken Paxton and Congressman Wesley Hunt.

Speaking in Fort Worth last month, Cornyn said a potential Paxton victory in the race could lead to “an Election Day massacre” for Republicans.

Paxton, who has led Cornyn in the race, has run to Cornyn’s right while dealing with personal controversies.

Trump has yet to make an endorsement in the race.

If no candidate in either primary secures more than 50% of the vote, a runoff election will be held on May 26.

NBC’s Steve Kornacki gave a rundown of both races yesterday.

View it here:

-The Supreme Court blocked the redrawing of a Republican congressional district in New York ahead of this year’s November election.

-The Trump administration dropped its lawsuit against four law firms with ties to Democrats.

-On Friday, former President Joe Biden spoke at a Democratic Party reception in Columbia, South Carolina, an event marking six years since his upset victory in the Palmetto State’s Democratic primary contest.

The strong showing helped catapult Biden to the Democratic nomination by building momentum for his fledgling campaign just ahead of Super Tuesday.

View his full remarks here:

-The late Reverend Jesse Jackson lied in state at the South Carolina Statehouse in Columbia yesterday.

-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem will testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee today.

-On this day in 1845, on his last full day in office, President John Tyler signed an act admitting Florida and Iowa to the Union.

Florida was admitted a slave state, while Iowa, which faced a boundary dispute delaying its official admission, was admitted a free state.

On the same day, Congress overrode a presidential veto for the first time, passing a bill over Tyler’s objection.

In 1931, The Star-Spangled Banner was adopted as the national anthem by an act of Congress.

The song was written by Francis Scott Key during the War of 1812 after he watched the American flag survive a 25-hour British bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore.

In 2009, President Barack Obama hosted Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy, in the Oval Office.

White House photographer Pete Souza captured a photo of Obama kneeling down to inspect the Resolute Desk, which was used by Kennedy, showing Obama examining the desk’s knee panel, where a famous 1963 photograph showed her brother, John F. Kennedy Jr., peeking out.

Other Links:

2 Victims of the Austin Bar Shooting Are Identified - The New York Times

Trump’s Iran decision sparks backlash from Tucker Carlson and some MAGA supporters - ABC

North Carolina Democrats latest to chart future of the party in congressional primary - NPR

Nancy Mace under House Ethics Committee investigation

Senate forges ahead on housing package, with Wall Street crackdown included - Politico

TSA moves to center of shutdown drama as jittery lawmakers offer warnings for economy - The Hill

Supreme Court blocks law against schools outing transgender students to their parents in California - AP

Melania Trump Promotes ‘Peace Through Education’ at U.N. as War With Iran Expands - The New York Times

Savannah Guthrie returns to her mother’s home in first sighting there since disappearance - AP

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Africa

-The African Union called for “restraint, urgent de-escalation, and sustained dialogue” following the outbreak of war in the Middle East.

-The United States imposed sanctions on Rwanda’s military and its senior leadership over its role in the decades-long conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The government in Kigali has long rejected accusations made by the United Nations and Western capitals that it has backed the M23 rebel group, which has led a brutal insurgency in the region.

In announcing the sanctions yesterday, the U.S. Treasury Department said that the rebel group’s territorial gains against Congolese forces would not be possible without Rwanda’s backing, adding that the support enabled “horrific human rights abuses.”

-South Sudan is teetering on a return to civil war after the latest wave of arrests by President Salva Kiir’s government.

-Guinea-Bissau’s two main political parties have called for dialogue with the ruling military junta that seized power late last year.

Other Links:

Africa braces for Middle East conflict fallout on fuel - Semafor

Ethiopia marks battle of Adwa anniversary amid rising tensions with Eritrea - Africa News

169 people killed after insurgents raid a village in a remote area of South Sudan - AP

Senegal PM says party could quit government if president diverges from vision - Reuters

Kidnapping of foreigners soars in Africa’s lawless Sahel region - BBC

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Americas and the Caribbean

-Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez’s government issued a statement yesterday expressing concern over the situation in the Middle East before rescinding it in an apparent move to appease the Trump administration.

Meanwhile, Mexico, Chile, and Ecuador called for a pause in hostilities.

-President Trump said over the weekend that Washington could launch a “friendly takeover” of Cuba, adding that Secretary of State Marco Rubio was in discussions with the government in Havana at a “very high level.”

View his remarks here:

The comment came amid heightened tensions between Washington and Havana, as the Trump administration has sought to blockade nearly all oil shipments to the island nation. The stiff measures have brought life to a halt, leaving much of the island without electricity.

Last week, Washington said it would authorize the resale of Venezuelan oil to the island.

-Argentine President Javier Milei delivered remarks to lawmakers in Buenos Aires yesterday to open the new session of the National Congress.

In his remarks, the populist leader said he would push to overhaul the country’s tax reform while battling with leftist lawmakers.

Last week, lawmakers approved a sweeping reform bill backed by Milei amid a nationwide strike.

The legislation weakens decades-old labor protections, which have caused trade unions to threaten widespread strikes.

Milei has called the reform package a “liberation of the workforce,” saying it will remove the “straitjacket” of worker protections impeding economic growth and investment.

Yesterday, the country’s largest trade union group filed a lawsuit to prevent the law from taking effect, arguing that it violates the constitution.

-Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said yesterday that she would return to the country in the coming weeks.

-On this day in 2011, President Obama hosted his Mexican counterpart, Felipe Calderón, at the White House, where the two leaders discussed strained relations following the murder of an ICE agent in Mexico.

Other Links:

Attacks on Iran Heighten Fears in Cuba, Already Under U.S. Pressure - The New York Times

Sen. Lindsey Graham says ‘Cuba is next’ after Iran strikes - The Hill

Cuba says it has detained 10 Panamanians accused of creating ‘subversive’ propaganda - AP

Party run by Colombia’s former FARC rebels fights for survival in Sunday’s election - AP

Venezuela’s Crude Exports Double in February Under US Oversight - Bloomberg

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Asia/Indo-Pacific

-Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called U.S. and Israeli attacks that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei “unacceptable” and a violation of its sovereignty.

He added that Iran, a partner of China’s, should consider the “reasonable concerns” of its Arab neighbors.

-Foreign ministers from Central Asian nations discussed the ongoing conflict in the Middle East yesterday, where they “stressed the importance of de-escalating tensions” between the United States, Israel, and Iran, according to a statement released by Kazakhstan’s foreign ministry.

-Australia’s government said yesterday it would not take part in military operations in the Middle East.

-South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong met yesterday for a summit meeting focused on artificial intelligence and nuclear energy as part of Lee’s state visit to the city-state.

Separately, Lee called on North Korea to resume dialogue with Seoul.

-Lawmakers in Malaysia’s parliament failed to pass a measure that would limit the prime minister to serving two terms.

Other Links:

Pakistan’s president defends ongoing strikes in Afghanistan and urges Kabul to dismantle militants - AP

Military called to northern Pakistan region after deadly Iran protests - Reuters

China urges Gulf states to unite against external interference amid widening conflict - Reuters

Iran attacks leave Japan balancing US ties and energy security - Nikkei

As China’s economy slows, some young people are snapping up cheap apartments to ‘retire’ early - AP

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Europe

-British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday that his country would allow the United States to use its bases for defensive strikes against Iran.

In a recorded statement on Sunday, Starmer said he made the decision to secure the “collective self-defense of long-standing friends and allies” and to protect British citizens in the region.

-In calls with four Arab Gulf leaders yesterday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would use Moscow’s ties to Iran to restore calm in the region while condemning U.S. and Israeli strikes on the country as “unprovoked aggression.”

-Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said yesterday that his country was close to completing technical work required to open negotiations for its European Union accession process.

Zelenskyy has called for member countries to set a date for Kyiv to join the 27-member bloc despite opposition from Hungary.

-The United Nations said yesterday that Ukraine’s population has declined by 8 million since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of the country in 2022.

-President Trump will host German Chancellor Friedrich Merz today at the White House.

Other Links:

Ukraine’s Zelensky Says Long Iran Campaign May Deplete Needed Air Defenses - The Wall Street Journal

European gas prices surge by up to 45% as Qatar stops LNG production - Euronews

Europe defends military bases and struggles to evacuate citizens as it is drawn into the war on Iran - AP

Britain says it’s not at war after a drone strikes its Akrotiri base in Cyprus - AP

Italy says Gulf countries have requested air defence systems - Reuters

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Middle East

-U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran continued yesterday, with the conflict expanding to Lebanon after Iranian-backed Hezbollah launched strikes on Israel.

Over the weekend, U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, capping months of building tensions between Washington and Tehran.

Yesterday evening, the Israeli military announced it had begun a new wave of strikes on Iran. Meanwhile, Iran continued its strikes on Gulf Arab countries that host U.S. military bases.

The death toll from the escalating conflict has risen to at least 555. Separately, U.S. service member deaths have risen to 6 since hostilities began early Saturday morning.

-Three American fighter jets were mistakenly downed by Kuwaiti fire yesterday.

View footage of one of the incidents here:

-The U.S. embassy in Riyadh was struck by two drones yesterday, according to Saudi Arabia’s defense ministry.

-According to a new poll, nearly 6 in 10 Americans disapprove of President Trump’s decision to launch an offensive against Iran.

-On this day in 2014, President Obama hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office.

In remarks to the press before their bilateral meeting, the two leaders discussed negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

View their remarks here:

The relationship between Obama and Netanyahu was marred by personal distrust and ideological differences.

One year to the day of the Oval Office meeting, as the Obama administration worked to finalize a deal with Iran to limit its nuclear program, Netanyahu took the unprecedented step of addressing a joint session of Congress to lambaste the pending agreement.

The invitation to Netanyahu by House Republicans was not coordinated with the White House.

View his address here:

Other Links:

Khamenei’s death brings Khomeini’s grandson into focus - Reuters

Intelligence assessment warns of Iranian attacks on US following Khamenei’s death - Reuters

Rubio Warns ‘Hardest Hits’ on Iran Lie Ahead and Offers Conflicting Rationales - The New York Times

Saudi military raises readiness levels after attacks - France 24

Iran attack on giant Saudi refinery pushes up oil prices - Axios

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That’s all for today. See you tomorrow.